Stage 1 Yanbu- Yanbu 305 kilometers
Stage position: Sixth

Transitional and complicated day in the first stage of the Dakar Rally. A day with 300 kilometers timed on mostly stony tracks, where the stones have been the main protagonists, causing numerous punctures among the participants. Carlos Sainz and Lucas Cruz, with the Ford Raptor, finished in sixth position, in a day in which they chose not to take too many risks.

Carlos Sainz: “More or less happy with the stage. It was a day with a lot of rocks and complicated trial areas. I’m glad we didn’t have any punctures and, in the end, we didn’t lose much time. Tomorrow we’ll start sixth, which is a good position, and that’s one day less of the race”.